This game is outstanding and an absolute masterpiece in art direction. There is more genius and creativity in one area here than the entirety of most other games.

Gameplay is very addictive. Combat is a wonderful mix of turn-based mechanics with real time player inputs. Setting the battles on a stage is truly inspired- you have to play to the crowd in order to refill your meter for special attacks and you have to be alert for hecklers in the audience that will throw things at you. Using explosive items carries the risk that part of the backdrop will fall, damaging you and/or the enemies.

There's a lot of content here too- reports have the play time at 30 hours plus. There's seven chapters here and I'm already at the ten hour mark in the middle of the second chapter.

It's games like Paper Mario that will make me always love Nintendo. There's just a special magic to their games, some sort of mixture of nostalgia and great design that add up to something special. The battle stage is a brilliant concept, and the game is just great fun to play.

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"Why did the chicken cross the Mobius strip? To get to the same side." - The Big Bang Theory

I really enjoy this game, I am about 6 hours in so far. There is something about it that makes it seem unique, other than the graphics of course. I'm not much of an RPG gamer at all, but I am really enjoying this one.

Yes, you would love it. It's a completely unique RPG that is completely fresh when compared to the trappings of a standard RPG. Everything about the game is just fun, fun, fun. I'm 10 hours into it and I still look forward to combat.

It doesn't feel nearly as 'kiddie' as most of Nintendo's titles (Pikmin, Mario Sunshine, Animal Crossing, etc.). In fact, there's quite a few 'adult' situations I've run into so far... most of which I would assume would go right over the heads of most kids (i.e. Bowser getting caught fapping to a picture of Peach)

And the 'cute' sound effects are kept to a minimum. Mario/Luigi both say almost nothing (all dialogue in the game is written), outside of the standard Mario jumping sounds/hammer/occasional grunt. Thankfully, they don't even do that annoying kiddie gibbrish when they talk either.

I don't find it kiddie at all, unless you find the classic Mario asthetic kiddie by default. The writing is very inventive and the humor is very witty and clever. As Dimmona said, there is a lot of humor clearly intended for adults (but not adult humor). Gamespot compared it to Pixar films and I think its a good comparison- it really offers something for everyone.

I am getting this, but I have to finish Tales, Xmen and Command Mission first...

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"I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind amazing things will happen." - Conan O'Brien

Excellent game, overall. I'm at 18 hours in on Chapter 4. I like the 2D style of art and animation. So far, Chapters 1 and 4 are my favorites. I must admit though, I do grow old of the fight scenes on stage. Not sure why, but I am starting to choose "run away" instead of fighting on stage quite a bit. The boss battles are still cool though.

Most of all, I am liking the humor. I just overheard this conversation in Chapter 4, among two black ravens on a tree:

"So I was chatting with Rotbeak in Mushroom Town on instant messenger yesterday. And he said he'd just gone fiber optic on his home network, you believe that?

Rad. I bet he's downloading 100 meg apps with no problems on those fat pipes. He's probably surfing that Feather Club for Crows site at the speed of light now.

Yeah, it just blows me away, all this "information age" hype you hear about. And yet, it's all games and feather-loss sites that are driving the technology.

Yeah, but I think tech-bust survivors can thrive if they just get viable business models..."

I'm going along with the crowd and agree that this game is fantastic. I'm about 15 hours in ( Chapter 3 ) right now and enjoying every minute. Usually after playing any game for this amount of time, I've got a list of nitpicks and minor quibbles, even in games that I really like. With this one I can't think of any complaints at all so far.

One of the things that I've really appreciated is that the writing seems to be improving as the game goes along. There's been some really strong stuff in each chapter and the "in-between" chapter segments are outstanding (trying not to spoil).

Chapter 3 is like its own little saga unto itself and had some pretty clever twists and turns that I hadn't expected. By the end of it I felt like I knew the arena and its denizens pretty darn well.

One of the print review I read made the point that most of the random NPCs in a given area have more personality than some RPG's main characters - I agree with this statement 100%

I think I'm about done with Chap 3, but all the Bass I drank is making me too sleepy to continue. I thought this was going to be a straightforward, boring chapter but to my pleasant suprise it has been just as enjoyable as the other ones

A tip for those who aren't bothering with the Trouble Request (ie side quests)- one of the ones that is available after you complete Chapter 4 will result in you gaining an additional party member.

I literally just completed that trouble before coming online right now. One of the things that really bugged me about Zelda: Wind Waker was how the game rewarded you. There was this one quest where you had twenty real-time minutes to perform a task that required one to sail to every corner of the map. Of course, when I first got the quest, they don't tell you its impossible until you get a certain upgrade. So, I waste twenty minutes before realizing that I can't do it. Once I get the upgrade, it takes me two times before I'm able to beat it.

What's the reward for beating the side quest? A quarter-heart upgrade, the same reward that you get for completing every other trivial side quest in the game. So, here's this epic quest that takes an hour, by far longer than almost any other quest in the game, and the reward is the same for finding a random trerasure chest.

This is what I love about Paper Mario so far. It really rewards the player for exploration. Three of the troubles might give you like 20 coins each as a reward, but that fourth reward is something really cool that makes completing the troubles worth it.

I'm just about to start Chapter 5 and this game is rapidly becoming my GOTY. The only complaint about the game so far is that I thought the backtracking in Chapter 4 was a trifle overdone. Very minor complaint in what otherwise was a great chapter.

I'm just about to start Chapter 5 and this game is rapidly becoming my GOTY. The only complaint about the game so far is that I thought the backtracking in Chapter 4 was a trifle overdone. Very minor complaint in what otherwise was a great chapter.

Completely agree. Its my GOTY to this point though I expect it to be overtaken by the greatness that is to come in November. There was a bit of backtracking in Chapter 4, but once gain, brilliant chapter. They are clearly going to have to wait until the next Nintendo system for a PM3 because it feels like they've used every idea and ounce of creativity in this title. The content, design, writing, and graphics put almost every other RPG to shame.

Ok, what happened? Did anyone finish the game? Did it stay as good or get better towards the end or did it fall flat? Is it still anyone's RPG GOTY? I bought it at the Toys R Us sale but haven't opened it yet.

Can't speak for everyone else but in my opinion each chapter has just improved on the previous. I'm at the beginning of the Chapter 7 with over 40 hours logged and not too much more to go. I've taken a brief break to explore San Andreas a bit but I can already hear PM2's call and will be returning soon.

One of the great aspects of PM2 is that the fantastical world allows the designers to be *very* creative in level design without worrying too much about world consistency. Each chapter is completely different from the last. After the first chapter I was a bit concerned that each chapter would be "fight through wilderness area to find town, talk to residents, fight through another area to get to final dungeon, fight through dungeon, fight boss, end of chapter." Nothing could be further from the truth. Each chapter has its own gameplay conventions and pacing and sometimes will deliberately wave the game player's expectations in his or her face and then go in a totally different direction.

The game has also gotten more challenging as it goes. Its never been frustrating but I do have to think strategically with each new batch of enemies in every area. The availablity of Star Points (Super Special Attacks), Flower Points (Special Attacks), and items can have a drastic approach on how each battle is fought.

The NPCs in your party are some of my favorites in an RPG. Even discounting their wonderful personality each has very clear strengths and weaknesses and you will be constantly swapping them out as the situation dictates.

Still playing it and it's still my favorite game of the year so far. Finished all the troubles that unlock at the end of Chapter 6 last night. The only disappointment I have in this game so far is that I had to look at a walkthrough to find the Golden Leaf for Chef Shimi's trouble. Never would've found it on my own.

Finally, finished Skies of Arcadia Legends last night, (YAY! What a great game, even if the random combat drove me insane sometimes!) and finally got to play through the prologue of this last night. For a game that I have consistently heard gets off to a slow start, I must say I had a blast just doing the prologue last night. I would guess some good times are ahead!

Well I guess enough people are loving it for me to keep it to eventually play. I have to take a week off from gaming and put some more time into SA but I will be opening and keeping PM2. Of course I was 90% sold just after watching the demo anyway

GTA:SA has sat unopened on my PS2 for 2 days now. CS:Source, CoD:UO, and all of the other PC games I was addicted just a short time ago now gather dust.

Paper Mario is seriously the most fun I've had gaming all year. Every chapter is completly unique and refreshing - just when you think it's going to be the same old fetch quests or fights as the previous chapter w/ a new theme (like most RPGs), it'll throw you a huge curveball. I'm working thru Chapter 6 now, and at no point in the game have I ever felt its dragged or become boring - there's not a whole lot of games I can say that about after playing it for 25 hours...

I agree with all the positive comments. I just got finished with... chapter 3? The one with the Arena-type thing. That one was my favorite chapter so far. I really really liked how they had individual events happening after EVERY SINGLE fight you did. And how there was stuff going on that you could possibly miss. You had to just wander around and look out for events.

The only parts I don't like are the parts where the professor just says "Yes, I think there's a pipe that leads there SOMEWHERE under town." And that's it. I don't like just aimlessly looking for some pipe somewhere. But that's a small nitpick with a great game.

Finally finished it last night. Excellent game, definitely my favorite game of the year so far. My only complaint is that some of the backtracking got a little old, especially at the start of Chapter 7. Other than that, the game is excellent, with a very satisfying ending.

This game provides a lot of value if you are into long games. Finish time was approximately 49:45, and I didn't finish some of the troubles (essentially optional side quests), go through the 100-level dungeon, complete the optional arena battles, or try out many of the mini-games. The game lets you continue playing after you finish the main quest and even provides additional content. A handful of new troubles appear after the main game is completed.

I'm a ways into Chapter 7. The backtracking at the beginning of Chapter 7 surprisingly didn't bother me. I think that might be due to the fact that I talked to the "hint guy" at the very beginning of the task and he laid out every single step. With the shortcuts to all of the areas opened up it didn't take long at all.

Andrew, what level were you when you beat it? I'm at Level 21 with 41 hours logged so far.